Make power bars with:

1 cup dried apples
1 cup dried dates
1/3 cup pecans

Combine and puree the dried fruit in your food processor. Set aside. Puree pecans, add fruit to pecans and mix. Make into patties and refrigerate in to-go baggies or boxes. The bars keep several days. Obviously the amounts are relative, as is the overall quantity, and my daughter likes added cinnamon. But the idea is clear. It is a good snack that might cost you one dollar per at the store. (Also, food companies tend not to add extra sugar to these two fruits, but watch out for others!)

Here is a healthy suggestion for easy snacking to cut the chips and the salt. (I notice that salt, vinegar, mustard and spice cravings tend to go together.)

Kale Chips- a.k.a Seriously Addictive Snack

Recipe is recommended with the use of vinegar and the olive oil. The original author used lemon pepper only, then next (a little) sea salt. Then she used fresh lemon juice and maybe a bit of the peel. She always used a sprinkling of nutritional yeast. (Vegan “cheese flavor”.)

Ingredients:

1-2 big bunches kale, leaves chopped to chip sized pieces (definitely remove the stems)
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon oil
coarse salt, to taste (Try going very light here and use sea salt, or skip this in favor of below.)
1-2 tablespoons favorite seasoning blend (Go heavier here and get creative: even no salt lemon pepper and ground mustard could work.)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Spread kale onto baking sheet. Pour the apple cider vinegar, oil and seasoning onto kale. Mix to coat all pieces.

3. Bake for 10 minutes or until crispy. Serve immediately!

Makes: 3-4 servings, Preparation Time: 3 minutes, Cooking Time: 10 minutes
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original source: https://community.tasteofhome.com/forums/t/819970.aspx

It is the overall diet and the combined effect that is most important, and it is not necessary to memorize every individual causal factor and its relationship to varios food groups.  But it is still helpful to list a few of the more prominent factors:

Homocysteine levels – Homocysteine is an amino acid that comes from protein (primarily meat).  It is harmless when processed by B vitamins from vegetables (folate, B6, B12).  When it is not processed, it is destructive to the cardiovascular system.  Lower homocysteine levels reduce cardiovascular disease rates.  A high ratio of vegetables to meats reduces this level.

Cholesterol Levels – The ratio of “bad cholesterol” or LDL to “good cholesterol” or HDL is a key contributor to the health of arteries and the heart.  The lower the ratio, the better. The Okinawa Diet is “a low-fat diet spiced with powerful cholesterol busting foods.” Okinawans also get regular exercise, avoid smoking, and have a stress-minimizing psychospiritual outlook.

Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators (SERM): These molecules are used in some medications that are prescribed to prevent breast cancer in high-risk groups.  Natural SERM’s are found in many of the foods preferred by the residents of Okinawa – primarily soy, flax, and other legumes.

In addition, the Okinawa diet favors benefial factors like antioxidants, low-calorie diet, mono-unsaturated fats, and Omega-3 from fish.  It is a diet full of foods that are high in fiber and that have a high glycemic index.  The following chart contrasts the Okinawa diet to the diet typical in America:

In the above chart, we can see the sharp contrast between the “typical” American diet and the beneficial traditional diet of Okinawa.  The Okinawa diet places a much higher emphasis on vegetables, grains, soy, and fish.  It de-emphasizes meat, dairy, and eggs.  Overall, this gives the Okinawan’s a diet that has high nutritional content but very low “caloric density” – lots of healthy foods that do not individually add up to excessive calorie count.

In our next post, we will take a look at some specific examples of the “glycemic index” and the caloric density of individual foods.  But the principle is already evident – we start to move towards the Okinawa model of health when we shift away from meat and dairy and replace these foods with lots of vegetables, grains, soy, and fish.

As shown above, the incidence of cancer in Okinawa is 26% lower than the US. The occurrence of coronary heart disease is 82% less than in the US. “Okinawans have 80 percent fewer heart attacks than North Americans do. And if Okinawans do suffer a heart attack, they are more than twice as likely to survive.” Overall, the mortality rate is 35% less!

The authors investigate the causes of these statistics, and they find over two-thirds of the causal factors are lifestyle-related. This is established by studying control groups, e.g. genetic Okinawans who have relocated and adopted a North American lifestyle and diet. In other words, the primary factor is not just good luck and genetics. The health benefits are primarily a result of healthy living and diet.